UNDP Nepal Annual Report 2012 by UNDP Nepal

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

uNDP IN NEPAL

Annual Report 2012

ta b le o f c o n t en t s Foreword ...........................................................................................................................................................01 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................02 2012 Key Results in Number ..............................................................................................................03 Chapter 1: Improving Democratic Governance ........................................................04 Supporting Constitution Building Process.....................................................05 UP CLOSE: The fight for women’s equal representation is still on..........06 Improving Respect for Human Rights...............................................................07 Expanding Access to Justice......................................................................................09 Reducing democratic deficit at the local levels..........................................10 Supporting credible Elections..................................................................................11 UP CLOSE: State of the Art facility for Voter Education................................12 Effective Aid Management.........................................................................................13 Chapter 2: Reducing poverty and improving lives..................................................14 Enterprise to eliminate poverty...............................................................................15 Internalization of MEDEP modality.......................................................................16 UP CLOSE: Eco-trail to prosperity.............................................................................16 Livelihood Recovery for Peace.................................................................................18 UP CLOSE: Changing face of Musahar community.....................................19 Making finance accessible to the poor.............................................................20 Chapter 3: Energy and Environment.....................................................................................22 Energy as development multiplier.......................................................................22 Energy for Livelihood.......................................................................................................23 Power to Succeed .............................................................................................................25 Increasing productivity through environment conservation..........25 UP CLOSE: Organic vegetable farming................................................................26 Conservation of the wetlands..................................................................................27 Ecosystem based Adaptation...................................................................................27 Chapter 4: Reducing vulnerabilities, preserving development gains.28 Building resilience..............................................................................................................29 UP CLOSE: Building capacity of first responders.............................................30 Chapter 5: Consolidating peace.................................................................................................32 Dialogue for peace............................................................................................................33 UP CLOSE: Political Party leaders collaborate for shared agenda........34 Mainstreaming Conflict Sensitivity.......................................................................36 Back to Civilian lives..........................................................................................................37 UP CLOSE: From carrying guns to running a meat shop..........................38 Chapter 6: Providing care for those living with HIV................................................40 Chapter 7: Funding sources and partnerships.............................................................42 Annexes ...........................................................................................................................................................45 List of acronyms.............................................................................................................................................48

Cover: A woman from Nepal’s Muslim community visits the Electoral Education and Information Centre (EEIC) to learn about electoral process in Nepal. EEIC was established with UNDP and AusAid’s support. UNDP and Development partners are supporting the Election Commission of Nepal to reach out to vulnerable communities and marginalised groups to give them a chance at voter registrations.

Foreword A lot happened in 2012. The term of the Constituent Assembly expired without producing the much anticipated constitution, putting on hold substantive discussions on contentious constitutional issues like federalism. The peace process became further consolidated in 2012 with the integration of some former Maoist combatants into the Nepal Army and voluntary discharge of the remaining force. Despite the political downs, Nepal continued to show extraordinary resilience. Some of the worst fears, thankfully, did not come true. The economy of Nepal continued to grow at a decent pace in 2012, but there is room for more rapid growth and that is where the focus should be. Investment in agriculture, infrastructure and energy can accelerate the growth rate, and the government has rightly started focusing in these sectors. Nepal is set to achieve most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, except those relating to full employment and climate change. By both national and international measures, the poverty rate continues to fall rapidly. The government plans to reduce it to 18 per cent in next three years and graduate into a developing country by 2022. All these are welcome ambitions. In collaboration with development partners, UNDP will support the Government of Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s priorities to help it achieve these goals. UNDP, along with other development partners, is already assisting the government to accelerate progress in areas where it is likely to fall behind in achieving MDGs. As discussion on post-2015 development agenda is beginning to culminate, Nepal has to better articulate its development agenda so that international assistance can be consolidated and geared to towards contributing to those goals.

UNDP Country Director Ms. Shoko Noda

Development partners will continue to provide more relevant support to both the people and Government of Nepal through their projects that support the peace process, governance, poverty reduction, disaster preparedness and climate change adaptations. The Government of Nepal continues to express strong demand for UNDPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s services. At UNDP, we believe in strong partnership between UNDP, other UN agencies and bilateral and multilateral development partners to help Nepal at this critical juncture. In these times of austerity in the global North, and as the goal 8 of MDGs states, development organisations need to collaborate effectively so that every aid dollar offers value for money. We look forward to much more cooperation between development organisations. We thank our partners from the government, development partners, civil society, private sector and UN agencies for their continuous cooperation and support. We remain committed to supporting efforts to ensure that the benefits of growth reach the poorest and most marginalised people across the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; supporting the government in its priorities. Our work would not have been possible without hard work of our staff. We acknowledge and appreciate their dedication and commitment.

Shoko Noda Country Director

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Introduction Achieving MDGs and improving lives in least developed countries requires sustained engagement. It also calls for building strong partnerships between development organisations to streamline their assistance. As the conclusion of Millennium Development Campaign in 2015 inches closer, there are still many hurdles that stand in the way of Nepal meeting all eight MDGs. As a country in transition since emerging from conflict, Nepal’s primary challenge over the last several years has been formulating a democratic and inclusive constitution that is acceptable to all sections of society. Against this backdrop, UNDP’s Support to the Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal (SPCBN) project continued to provide valuable support for inclusive and participatory constitution building in 2012. UNDP’s education and dialogue campaigns have contributed to raising the general public’s awareness about the constitution drafting process and the issues at stake, such as federalism, state restructuring, the electoral system, citizenship and the judiciary. Preventing future conflict has also been a centrepiece of UNDP’s transitional support in Nepal. In 2012, UNDP’s Collaborative Leadership and Dialogue project organised training for 263 leaders to address the dynamics of conflict around contentious issues and lay the foundation for the peaceful resolution of future conflicts. To ensure the results of future elections will be creditable, UNDP and other development partners continue to provide assistance to help the Election Commission of Nepal implement major electoral reforms. Initiatives include the establishment of a biometric voter registration system, mapping all polling stations using a geographic information system and the a state-of-the-art voter education centre. UNDP’s has also helped to improve governance in Nepal by building the capacity of various national institutions. The National Human Rights Commission received support to monitor human rights violations and investigate cases of human rights abuse. UNDP also partnered with courts and line ministries to improve their capacity to deliver justice.

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Another major challenge for countries emerging from conflict is the absence of periodic elections. In Nepal, elections for local bodies have not been held since 2002. Despite the absence of local bodies, UNDP is working with the government and other development partners to provide citizens forums to voice their opinion and participate in local development process. The Ministry of Finance’s International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division has successfully rolled out an aid management platform to improve coordination and transparency of foreign aid. This will help Nepal streamline its international assistance to fund priority projects. With nearly half a million new people entering the workforce each year, it is important that enough jobs are created to support inclusive development in Nepal. In partnership with the Government of Nepal and AusAid, UNDP’s Microenterprise Development Programme (MEDEP) has helped move 23,006 people out of poverty by creating 4,313 new jobs in micro and small enterprises. Over 50 micro hydro plants have been installed to provide over 16,000 rural households with electricity. Nepal has a wealth of natural resources that will be instrumental in transforming the country, but also makes people vulnerable to natural calamities that can reverse decades of progress in one strike. To preserve development gains, UNDP has been working with government ministries to mainstream disaster preparedness in development planning and has been partnering with various government departments to implement building codes and build capacity to prepare for disasters and respond to emergencies. As a result, Nepal is now better prepared to deal with disasters today than it was few years ago. The Central Natural Disaster Relief Committee has recommended that the Cabinet introduce legislation, that will require all local bodies to set aside at least 5 per cent of their resources for disaster preparedness and climate risk management. Government training institutes have introduced courses about disaster preparedness into training programmes for civil servants. A lot has been achieved in 2012, yet a lot more remains to be done. UNDP in Nepal continues to push for more equal and inclusive society, while supporting national institutions to uphold rule of law, offer better service delivery and provide improved livelihood opportunities for all citizens of Nepal.

U N D P â&#x20AC;&#x2122; s D e v el o p m en t Pa r t ne r s h ip in N epal 2 0 1 2 K e y Re s u lt s in N u m b e r *

10.8 million Eligible voters registered with biometric profiling by Election Commission of Nepal with the financial support and technical assistance of UNDP, EU, DFID, Norway, AUSAID and Denmark. 23,006 people moved out of poverty with microenterprise schemes. 4,313 new entrepreneurs created with inclusion rate of over 60 percent. 3,871 additional jobs created because of new entrepreneurs hiring staff, among them 65 percent are women. 380 new micro-entrepreneursâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; groups received management knowledge and skills and 47 new cooperatives were established and registered. 17,284 households received start up micro capital grant. 70,000 deprived individuals have access finance in remote parts of Nepal. 168 new branches of Micro Finance Institutions were opened in remote parts of Nepal. 3,019 small but vital community infrastructures constructed or renovated. 16,747 formerly deprived households have access to modern energy with the installation of 394 Micro Hydropower Plants.

5 million liters of ground water recharged in ponds and communal courtyards. 3,000 community members trained on search and rescue, first aid, early warning system and disaster risk management. 1,208 masons trained in earthquake-resilient building constructions. 50 Village Development Committees (VDCs) have improved disaster resilience. 60 Community Based Disaster Risk Management Committees formed in 11 districts with involvement of more than 600 community members (51% female). 39 VDCs have allocated budget for Disaster Risk Management in their plans. 36 school blocks were constructed, and 64 schools were renovated or retrofitted after 2011 earthquake. 25 Armed Police Force officers trained in seven-week deep water diving for search and rescue during water-induced disasters. 263 leaders trained to help support dialogue initiatives in Janakpur and Nepalgunj. 50 percent reduction in backlog cases in National Human Rights Commission. 28 percent of National Human Rights Commission Recommendation fully implemented by the government.

9,343 toilet-attached domestic biogas plants constructed. 5 regional human rights resource centers established 24,120 improved cooking stoves, 4,000 rice-husk stoves, and 5,769 solar home systems installed 24,000 illiterate adults, mostly women, are now taking part in literacy classes

550 journalists trained on constitutional issues and new media * UNDP supports Government and People of Nepal in collaboration with other development partners. All the numbers presented here are part of either government-led and UNDP supported projects or projects directly implemented by UNDP in collaboration with other development partners.

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Chapter 1

Improving Democratic Governance Introduction UNDP believes in building strong and resilient nations. For over 50 years, UNDP has helped the Government of Nepal build national capacity by strengthening local governance, developing effective planning processes, managing foreign aid, fostering human rights and building national institutions so that they can uphold rule of law. When the first Constituent Assembly dissolved in May 2012, it interrupted the process of drafting a new Constitution for Nepal. In the absence of a parliament, governing became more difficult, which exacerbated the difficulties of operating in a fragile policy environment. For example, because the opposition challenged the caretaker governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s authority to implement a full budget, only a partial budget was announced with reduced funding available for development.. Despite these challenges, UNDP continued to provide assistance to improve governance in Nepal by working with both the government and communities to build national resilience against a range of vulnerabilities. 4

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Constituent Assembly

S u pp o r t ing C o n s t i t u t i o n B u ilding P r o c e s s In late 2011 Nepal’s peace process was beginning to show signs of a breakthrough after major parties signed a new agreement to integrate former Maoist combatants into the Nepal Army. There was widespread optimism that this would have a positive effect on negotiations on a new constitution. Many hoped it would lead to the successful promulgation of a new constitution by May 2012. Though key parties reached an agreement on several contentious issues, including the forms of governance. Differences of opinion over other important issues, such as federalism, however, remained unresolved and ultimately led to the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly (CA) in May 2012. UNDP supported the drafting of the new constitution by providing national and international expertise and exposure to help the legislature make informed decisions, strengthened the capacity of the CA secretariat and engaged citizens through awareness raising programmes. UNDP ensured marginalized and disadvantaged groups were included in the drafting process by supporting women, indigenous people and people from Dalit groups who were members of the Constituent Assembly. Federalism has been a contentious issue in Nepal because of the marked absence of substantive and informed discussion about the various ways Nepal could be structured as a federal state – in place of reason and logic, passion and paranoia have led to unhealthy conflict between political parties. UNDP has provided a platform for debate and discussion about many issues related to the new constitution, including federalism. UNDP leveraged its impartiality and neutrality to bring leaders and members of the crossparty Task Force together to engage in constructive dialogue.

Since the dissolution of the CA, UNDP has continued to provide civic education and training for journalists, lawyers and other influential members of society on constitutional issues. UNDP’s Support to the Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal (SPCBN) project provides valuable support for inclusive and participatory constitution building. Through the project’s education and dialogue campaigns the general public have been informed about the constitution drafting process, including federalism, state restructuring, the electoral system, citizenship and the judiciary.

Political leaders attend an interaction on Dalits and state restructuring

Pa r t ne r s Department for International Development (DFID), Denmark, Norway, British Embassy, Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR-UNDP), Austria and Japan

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Up Clo s e

The fight for women’s equal representation is still on One of the former co-coordinators of Constituent Assembly (CA) Women’s Caucus, Kalpana Rana was at the forefront of the push for the full inclusion of women in the CA. “The CA helped women leaders from different political parties to unite on women’s issues, a huge achievement in a country like ours which is guided by many competing political ideologies,” says Rana. In conjunction with other development partners UNDP helped women, who were members of the CA, ensure the new constitution protected women’s rights. For example, UNDP helped the CA Women’s Caucus, which comprised 197 members from various political parties, analyze the provisions for women’s rights as they were debated in the CA’s ten thematic Constitutional Committees. In 2012, UNDP (in collaboration with UNHCR and UNICEF) helped convene informal meetings between the Caucus, the Interparty Women’s Alliance and other women’s groups to discuss the citizenship provisions in the new constitution and lobby to ensure the provisions met international standards. After several meetings, the Caucus was able to take a united stand on equal citizenship rights for women. The Caucus successfully convinced members of the CA’s Constitutional Committees that women should comprise at least 33 per cent of the total representation in all state mechanism, have equal rights to inherit parental property and equal access to education and health services in the new constitution. Following the dissolution of the CA in May 2012, all five former co-coordinators of the Caucus have come together to form an alliance that continues the struggle for women’s rights. “The support from the UNDP and other partner agencies helped us raise our voice in the CA meetings. Often women CA members were

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Kalpana Rana, one of the former coordinators of the CA Women’s Caucus

not given much time to speak. Regardless we were able to make our voice heard,” says Rana. The five-member alliance continues to enlist the support of other women who were former members of the CA, but have now shifted their focus to ensuring women are adequately represented in the next CA election. “We will not let the parties reduce the proportion of women representation in the next CA from 33 per cent benchmark,” says Rana. “We are also exploring other provisions whereby the Election Commission could make it mandatory for parties to have 33 percent women in their central committees in order to be registered with the Commission for election purpose.” The focus now shifting to ensuring adequate representation of women in the next CA election. “We will not let the parties reduce the 33 percent women representation in the election,” said Rana. “We are also exploring whether there are any mandatory provisions whereby the Election Commission could register only those parties which have 33 percent women in their central committee,” said Rana.

I m p r o v ing Re s pe c t f o r H u m an Rig h t s Through its project on ‘Strengthening the Capacity of the National Human Rights Commission’ (SCNHRC), UNDP is working to build the institutional capacity of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). The project helps the NHRC to develop policy, formulate guidelines, and conduct training and interaction programmes. The project’s goal is to enable the Commission to undertake missions to investigate cases of human rights violations and to conduct training programs to teach others how to monitor, investigate, document and report violations of human rights. The project has also helped the NHRC establish outreach

offices, human rights resource centres and to design an organizational structure that allows the NHRC to effectively address contemporary human rights issues in Nepal in 2012. Settlement of Backlog Cases The NHRC’s capacity has been strengthened considerably by UNDP’s support for monitoring and investigating human rights situations and incidents. Through UNDP’s technical and financial assistance, the SCNHRC Project helped the NHRC’s Protection Team carry out special missions to investigate evidence of human rights violations. Based on the findings of these missions, the

Commission made recommendations to the Government of Nepal to compensate the victims and prosecute the perpetrators. During this period, a total of 217 monitoring missions were deployed. The NHRC is conducting these pro-active monitoring missions on a trial basis to investigate the status of economic, social and cultural rights. During this period, the NHRC was able to settle 394 complaints. As the deadline to write the new constitution approached on May 28 2012, the project helped prevent the escalation of violence by providing support for the NHRC to monitor the human rights situation across the country. The project

Investigation team from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) collecting data of human rights violation cases.

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also provided the NHRC with resources to investigate and take action on 700 backlogged cases of human rights violations that were reported in 2012 Recognising that the absence of a Human Rights Commission Act impeded the effective implementation of the NHRC’s constitutional mandate and everyday administration, the project played an active role in fostering partnerships with civil society, other UN agencies and the international community. Through a series of targeted campaigns, advocacy programmes and publications, the project contributed to the successful enactment of the National Human Rights Commission Act in 2012.

Pa r t ne r s Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (SDC) The British Embassy, Danida, Embassy of Finland and OHCHR

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Hig h lig h t s n UNDP supported the establishment of Human Rights Resource Centres, where were designed to educated and inform people about human rights, at five regional offices and one sub-regional office in 2012. n Helped the NHRC to expand ties with human rights insitutions in other countries to strengthen its work on the rights of migrant workers. This led to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with NHRC of the Republic of Korea. n The project has played a vital role in linking the NHRC with donors, civil society organizations, international community, and other UN agencies. n The project supported the finalization and publication of Exhumation Guidelines 2012, which were developed by the NHRC. The guideline, which was adopted by the NHRC on May 31, 2012, is a crucial instrument for guiding how exhumations are conducted in Nepal.

A meeting on Universal Periodic Review held in Kathmandu on July 1, 2012. Seen from right in the dias are Chairperson of NHRC Mr. Kedarnath Upadhayay, then Chief Secretary of the Government of Nepal Mr. Madhav Ghimire, and then UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Robert Piper.

E x panding A c c e s s t o Justice Nepal’s rural population has little or no access to justice system. Illiteracy, poverty and discrimination, coupled with a relatively archaic legal code and complicated legal procedures, make upholding the constitutional principle of equality before the law very difficult. UNDP supported the Supreme Court of Nepal and Ministry of Law and Justice, Constituent Assembly and Parliamentary Affairs, and the Nepal Bar Association to improve common people’s access to justice and system reforms. Through assistance from the Access to Justice Project, which was phased out in 2012, the Government of Nepal carried out a comprehensive programme to strengthen the justice system in four areas: Transitional justice, gender justice, access to justice at the local level, and reforming laws to meet international standards. The project also supported the Supreme Court of Nepal to collaborate with line ministries to build capacity of court officials.

Hig h lig h t s n Supported the preparation of an explanatory note on the Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and Sentencing Bill. n Supported the development of a central database of judgments that have been executed. Over 5,000 pre-2012 case records were entered into the database. n Out of 1771 disputes that were registered in 2012, 14571 disputes were successfully resolved by Community Centres. n Free legal aid was provided to 1496 victims of gender based violence. n UNDP’s support for law reform led to a substantive change in the area of law making, judicial decentralization and democratization. The writ judicial power has been delegated to the local and appellate courts in Nepal.

Judges taking part in a training on Forensic Science

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Red u c ing de m o c r at i c de f i c i t at t h e l o c al le v el s The Local Governance and Community Development Programme (LGCDP), is a government-owned programme that is supported by UNDP and other development partners. Through this project, grassroots institutions known as Ward Citizen Forum (WCF) were created to engage citizens and communities in local governance processes. In 2012, an additional 8,937 WCFs have been formed with 294,418 members. With that, the number of WCFs in 75 districts has reached 33,166 with 773,000 members (45% women). In the absence of elected local bodies, LGCDP supported the creation of citizen forums to allow citizens to participate in decision-making process at the local level. The LGCDP has also created Citizen Awareness Centres (CACs) for disadvantaged citizens to educate them about their rights and to identify and address issues that affect their daily lives— and enhance access to basic services in local bodies and development agencies. The LGCDP, has provided technical support to the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development (MoFALD). UNDP has supported capacity development of social mobilisers, local body officials and other relevant actors and has played the role of administrative agent for UN agencies. A Training of Trainer (ToT) programme on social mobilisation was organized for focal person of

Pa r t ne r s ADB, DFID, DANIDA, Govt. of Norway, CIDA, SDC, GiZ, UNCDF, Unicef, UNWomen, UNFPA and UNV

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UNDP supports training of VDC Secretaries

Members of citizen awareness center participating in a meeting

Local Service Providers (LSPs) from DDCs and Municipalities. A total of 3,044 persons (14 per cent women) in 120 batches were trained as resource persons on social mobilisation. 2,396 social mobilisers and focal persons (43 per cent women) were trained on civic oversight. Similarly, 740 newly recruited VDC secretaries (7 per cent women) took part in training on local level planning, social mobilisation, Local Self Governance Act/Regulations, Gender Equality and Social Inclusion and Monitoring & Evaluation. With UNDP’s support, MoFALD has prepared a Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategy to ensure that women make up at least 33 per cent of all the committees that are formed by local bodies and MoFALD. Now, at least 35 per cent of capital grants to local bodies must be allocated for women, children and socially excluded groups. As a result, local bodies are able to respond more effectively to GESI related issues and prioritise projects for women, children and excluded groups.

Nirmaya Ban, the Village Development Committee (VDC) Secretary of Piple, Tehrathum said, “People still think that women do not have the skills required to work as a VDC Secretary. I faced a lot of challenges in my work as my senior officials and even some of my junior colleagues did not believe that I could handle the pressure that comes with this position”. She was one of the participants in a training provided by LGCDP. There are 81 women Secretaries out of the total 3,915 positions for Village Development Committee level — the lowest tier of the government body. With the absence of elected government for almost a decade, the villages of Nepal suffer from poor delivery of services. The rural people are disconnected from central level policies and planning. LGCDP has been strengthening the capacity of the local institutions such as the Ward Citizens’ Forum, Village Development Committees and District Development Committees for better delivery of services and more accountability. Having more women as Secretaries at the Village Development Committee level is a leap progress from gender perspective and a move towards more inclusive participatory decision making process at the local level. LGCDP provided technical support to MoFALD with UNDP funding to organise a 4-day comprehensive training on planning, monitoring, financial management, reporting, block grant allocations etc for all VDC secretaries in

S u pp o r t ing c r edi b le E le c t i o n s Elections are an important part of helping countries institutionalise democratic practice. In Nepal, where the transition to a robust democratic system is ongoing, elections devoid of credibility could lead to new conflict and tensions. As of December 2012, with the financial support and technical assistance of UNDP and other development partners the Election Commission of Nepal, has registered 10.8 million eligible voters. This represents approximately 51.22 per cent of all estimated in-country citizens who are aged 16 and above.

Nirmaya Ban sharing her experience during a training

the five development regions of Nepal. 740 participants including 64 new women VDC Secretaries attended the training, which was facilitated by the government’s Local Development Training Academy. Nirmaya Ban further said, “This basic training is supposed to be provided after the selection of VDC Secretaries and prior to joining the post, but it does not always happen so. I have found the government’s official procedure to be very process-oriented. I was finding it difficult to execute my responsibilities without my prior experience in the administrative area and without adequate support and mentoring from my seniors. This training has been helpful for me as it has helped me to think in a new angle and get knowledge about some important issues required for inclusive development. Now I am clearer about my role as the Secretary of a Village Development Committee.”

For the first time in Nepal, the registration data are being stored in a central database, which allows voter data to be verified to prevent duplicate records and voter lists can be printed directly from the database. The introduction of this new voter registration system is a major reform in the history of Nepal’s electoral process, which addresses some of the inherent flaws in previous voting systems that allowed people to cast multiple votes and vote by proxy. The adoption of this modern registration process, and the development of a voter list that includes photographs and fingerprints, will help to clearly identify voters on election day. This will deter people from trying to cast false votes, allows for the detection and removal of duplicate registrations, and accurately tracks the internal migration of voters between locations. UNDP is also supporting the Election Commission to expand the voters’ registration drive so that more women and people from vulnerable groups have a chance to register and vote. Voter registration figures in 2012 show a positive trend among female voters who account for over 51% of all registrations. UNDP also supported the Election Commission in 2012 with public outreach and civic and voter education campaigns. UNDP facilitated global networking and opportunities for South-South cooperation and the professional development of Election Commission staff with training for 351 staff (including 76 women). UNDP helped the ECN map nearly 10,000 polling centres using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. It also provided technical assistance for electoral security, electoral dispute resolution, and election operations and logistics.

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State of the Art facility for Voter Education Visitors learning about the electoral process in the EEIC

The multi-purpose Electoral Education and Information Centre (EEIC) was established with the goal of promoting the skills, knowledge and values that encourage the people of Nepal to be informed and become active citizens through greater political participation. The centre, which is located inside the premises of the Election Commission Nepal, was formally inaugurated by the Rt. Hon. President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav on May 24, 2012. The EEIC was established to educate students, political parties and their members, first time voters, civil society and common citizens on the election process, democracy, governance and other important aspects of electoral education. The centre has facilities, such as a mini-theatre, a museum and five learning areas that cover

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constitution and electoral history, the rights and responsibility of voters, the voting process, political processes, roles and responsibilities of the government, a mock polling activity, library, training, outreach coordination, civic/ electoral/voter education and a media centre. In 2012, more than 6,172 visitors from schools, civil society organisations, I/NGOs, and security forces have visited the centre. To strengthen the capacity of Election Commission officials, they have been trained on presentation, communication and leadership skills. With the technical assistance of UNDP/ESP, the EEIC has developed â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;e-booking softwareâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; that allows visitors to make online bookings to visit the centre through the ECN website.

P rt

AusAID, Govt. of Denmark, Norway, DFID, European Union, JICA

Effective Aid Management Foreign aid continues to play an important role in Nepal’s socio-economic development, representing 26 per cent of the national budget and about 5.4 per cent of GDP. In Nepal, the Ministry of Finance has the mandate to coordinate and manage foreign aid in accordance with national priorities. UNDP’s Developing Capacities for Effective Aid Management and Coordination (DCEAMC) project is helping the Ministry of Finance to roll out an online information system to promote aid transparency and aid predictability called the Aid Management Platform (AMP). By the end 2012, all development partners, line ministries and selected INGOs were

S t r eng t h ening N at i o nal P lanning and M o ni t o r ing Capa c i t y UNDP continues to support the NPC to help make the NPC’s planning and monitoring systems inclusive. UNDP also helps the NPC develop effective strategies to achieve the MDGs. Under its Strengthening Planning and Monitoring Capacity of NPC (SPMC) project, UNDP is supporting the apex national planning body to make Nepal’s planning and monitoring processes resultsoriented, evidence-based, MDG focused, gender sensitive, socially inclusive and environmentally responsive.

provided with online access and training on the AMP. And they are now required to update information about their projects and disbursements in line with the national budget cycle. The platform plays an important role in the preparation of the national budget and reflects the technical assistance projects in Technical Assistance (TA) Book. The Aid Transparency Index is also prepared through AMP and is reviewed periodically as an incentive for donors to update aid disbursement data.

DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION REPORT

The AMP has been a very effective tool for the collection and dissemination of information about foreign aid flows. It has filled significant gaps in government knowledge about trends in aid allocation by development partners, the amount of aid that is provided off-budget – particularly technical assistance

In 2012, a macroeconomic modelling was launched to build national capacity in Nepal to help the National Planning Commission adopt a model-based development plan formulation process instead of ad hoc planning. UNDP’s project also sensitized policy makers on mainstreaming gender in macroeconomic policies and plans— offering support to introduce a framework for green economy in 2012.

FISCAL YEAR 2011-2012

Government of Nepal

Ministry Of Finance

International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division Singhdurbar, Kathmandu March 2013

(TA) – and the extent of fragmentation and predictability of aid. Based on AMP data the Development Cooperation Report was published in March 2013, which gave a broad overview of foreign aid in Nepal, along with an analysis of aid fragmentation, the use of technical assistance, and the alignment of programs with national policy.

Hig h lig h t s n All projects within the Aid Management Platform (AMP) were geo-coded to allow projects to be spatially analysed and mapped. n Integrated AMP with other financial information systems used by the Government of Nepal.

Pa r t ne r s Department for International Development (DFID), Danida, USAID

Hig h lig h t s n MDGs consistent Macroeconomic Model (MDGcMEM) published in 2012 n Provided training on Gender and Macroeconomic Policy to senior managers and officials. n Provided training on gender and social inclusion to NPC officials. n Supported a rigorous consultative process to refine the national M&E guidelines. n Strengthened the NPC’s capacity to evaluate programme implementation n Integrated climate change and environmental aspects into budgeting processes through the development of climate change budget code. n Prepared a draft framework for the green economy.

Pa r t ne r s Department for International Development (DFID)

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Chapter 2

Reducing poverty and improving lives Introduction Every year over 450,000 Nepalis enter the workforce with little or no hope of finding employment in the domestic labour market. According to one government estimate, over 1,000 people leave Nepal every day to seek jobs abroad, but a large number of them get cheated or exploited in the process. While Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economy is growing at a decent rate, there are never enough jobs created to meet the demand for domestic employment. Agriculture, which contributes 34 per cent to Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s GDP, is the primary source of income for approximately 70 per cent of the population. Employment in the agricultural sector is, however, seasonal and the unemployment rate is very high. Lack of employment opportunities, coupled with a high rate of population growth has resulted in the underutilisation of between 40-50% of the adult workforce. This has accentuated the incidence of poverty, particularly in rural areas of Nepal.

MEDEP supported micro-entrepreneur Dhal Bahadur Dahal in his vegetable farm

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

UNDP works closely with the Government of Nepal to meet the economic needs of rural people, especially the needs of those who live below the poverty line. Besides providing policy support at the central level, the Microenterprise Development Programme (MEDEP), Enhancing Access to Financial Services (EAFS) and Livelihood Recovery for Peace (LRP) projects are helping to improve livelihoods, improve economic growth and enable progress toward achieving the MDGs.

E n t e r p r i s e t o eli m inat e poverty The Government of Nepal and UNDP initiated the MicroEnterprise Development Programme (MEDEP) in 1998 to promote off-farm employment and income-generating opportunities. In the first 14 years of operation, MEDEP has helped more than 57,000 micro-entrepreneurs to establish more than 8,000 enterprises which has created 58,000 new employment opportunities in the rural areas of Nepal, especially in the most marginalised disadvantaged communities. More than 70 per cent of its beneficiaries are women followed by unemployed youths, Dalits, indigenous nationalities, religious minorities, Madhesis, differently-abled people, disaster and conflicted-affected families, people living with HIV and AIDS, Brahmin, Chhetri, Sanyasi and Thakuris. In 2012, MEDEP created 3,646 new entrepreneurs, which was in excess of its target of 3,500. The inclusion target for women and Dalits reached 79% as against the target of 60%, and 33% against the target of 30%, respectively. An additional 3,871 jobs were created because the new entrepreneurs hired staff. Women make up 65% of the new workforce. On average, new micro-entrepreneurs increased their incomes by US $776 from an average baseline per capita income of US $107. The incomes of 23,006 people moved from below to above the poverty line. Altogether, 380 new micro-entrepreneursâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; groups (MEGs) received group management knowledge and skills training and 47 new cooperatives were established and registered. An additional 140 participants from 70 cooperatives were trained in business planning, financial management and book and acccount keeping. These cooperatives established direct links with the Rural Self-reliance Fund of the Nepal Rastra Bank and a total of NPR 15 million in wholesale loans were distributed between 10 different cooperatives. Seven cooperatives developed capacity to use information technology tools to expand and sustain their enterprises. MEDEP helped 1,137 new and existing micro-entrepreneurs obtain NPR 12.2 million in loans from cooperatives to establish and/or expand their enterprises.

Eleven new Common Facility Centres (CFCs) were established by 302 micro-entrepreneurs (63% women, 18% Dalits) to produce a range of products like honey, aloe, milk, ginger, mushrooms and lapsi. Five existing CFCs, which serve 303 microentrepreneurs, were upgraded to make them sustainable. Micro-entrepreneurs were linked with a number of private sector organisations to establish a buy-back guarantee for the entrepreneursâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; products and services. MEDEP helped microentrepreneurs identify international markets and create links with exporters. In one case, this resulted in an order for 280 metric tonnes of ginger. Microentrepreneurs, who were supported by MEDEP, exported products worth NRS 130 million.

MEDEP has produced a catalogue of goods produced by microentrepreneurs to help them better market these products.

29 microenterprises generated enough business to graduate into small enterprises in 2012.

Pa r t ne r s AusAID & CIDA

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Up Clo s e

I n t e r nali z at i o n o f M E D E P m o dali t y With the support of MEDEP, the Ministry of Industry, NPC and other relevant ministries and organisations developed a Five-year National Plan and strategy to implement Microenterprise Development for Poverty Alleviation (MEDPA). The vision is to gradually implement MEDPA in all 75 districts within five years to establish 61,013 new micro-entrepreneurs and continue support for 21,937 existing microentrepreneurs. MEDEP is helping to revive inactive enterprises and to provide scale-up support to enhance the survival and job creation potential of the microenterprises that demonstrate the best performance. 5,975 micro-entrepreneurs â&#x20AC;&#x201C; against the target of 5,000 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; benefited from such support in 2012. Seventy-three per cent of these beneficiaries are women, 16 per cent are Dalits, 34 per cent are from indigenous nationalities and 54 per cent are youth.

Eco-trail to prosperity With the support of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), Trekking Agentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association of Nepal (TAAN) and local communities, MEDEP has developed new eco-trekking trails in Parbat and Myagdi districts. The community-managed route has been named the Eco-trail Mohare-Khopra-KhayarLek and it offers a fabulous Nepali experience with a perfect blend of nature and culture.

Before this initiative, people along the ecotrek path imported their vegetables from the Tarai and valuable forest resources such as aloe used to rot in the wilderness. Now, they make forest-based products such as Lokta paper, natural ornaments, nettle powder, and Himlayan aloe and stinging nettle products. These are completely new initiatives that have created sustainable livelihoods.

This eco-trail has become a path to economic prosperity for the local people and a unique experience for visitors. People from the local communities along the ecotrail have full ownership of the initiative because they take complete responsibility for the management of the eco-trail and associated businesses like community dining halls, community lodges, lunch spots and home stay opportunities.

In 2012, the community-managed ecotrail generated NPR 1.6 million from the tourism-based enterprises. There are three community lodges and four dining halls along the route. Out of the total income from the trekkers, 90 per cent returns immediately to the community. The eco-trail management committee uses the remaining 10 per cent to cover administration costs and the conservation, construction and renovation of the trail.

The enterprise has been proven to be a catalyst for sustainable, community-based and locally owned economic development. Local people have received training in cooking and lodge management, and more and more people are involved in various agricultural and forest-based enterprises, such as off-season organic vegetable cultivation and strawberry and trout farming.

Trekkers along the Eco-Tourism Route, supported by MEDEP, in Myagdi

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

L i v eli h o o d Re c o v e r y f o r P ea c e

A couple in Bhangaha village in Mahottari district ready to harvest their fruit produce supported by LRP.

Hig h lig h t s n Constructed and renovated 3,019 small but vital pieces of community infrastructure, including the construction of 2,077 toilets and installation of 600 hand pumps, construction of 89 new community buildings, 73 lane improvements and 29 Electricity grid extensions. n Installed solar lamps in 10, 84 households that were not connected to the national power grid. n Extended microenterprise start-up grants to 17,284 households. n Mainstreamed gender in all aspects of the project. Up to 95 per cent of the members of community groups are women. 740 women have been trained to serve as local leaders to prevent gender-based violence. n Mobilized 133 youth clubs in 2012 to capitalise on the positive energy of the youth and promote peace and social cohesion in communities.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

In 2009, the Livelihood Recovery for Peace project (LRP) was launched in Sarlahi, Mahottari and Rautahat, which are the three poorest districts in the most conflict-affected areas of the Terai. The combined population of these districts is 1.7 million, of which approximately 40 per cent come from disadvantaged backgrounds. A history of conflict, repeated natural disasters, entrenched poverty and lack of awareness about their rights and opportunities have contributed to this areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lack of progress toward meeting development goals. The LRPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s integrated intervention in these three districts in the Central Region of the Terai has had a measurable impact in the lives of vulnerable, excluded and economically disadvantaged (VEED) people. Social empowerment of 21,215 households from Dalit and other disadvantaged communities has increased the representation and participation of these groups in local decision making bodies, especially in Village

Development Committees, Sub-health Post Committees and schools. This project has improved peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s access to social welfare schemes so they can claim their entitlements to allowances that are available to the elderly, single women and people with disabilities, and to scholarships for people from Dalit groups. The VEED population is better organised and informed today through the formation and consolidation of 728 community organisations. Improved social mobilisation has empowered the poor to successfully lobby their community leaders, which has enabled them to claim 12.64 million rupees (US $ 150,000) from the VDC Block Grant to fund their priorities. This includes access to safe drinking water, toilet construction, improvements to roads and drainage and the installation of solar lamps and skill development activities for women. This project has proven the benefits of effective social mobilisation on the poorest and most vulnerable people. Now they understand the value of acquiring citizenship cards and other vital registration in order to exercise their legal, social and economic rights.

Pa r t ne r s Govt. of Norway

Hajara Khatoon of Mahottari district happily shows proof of the regular savings she has made as a result of the income generating activity supported by LRP

Changing face of Musahar community Just one year ago, residents of of the Musahar settlement in Hajmaniya VDC of Rautahat frequently quarrelled over who would be the first to fill their water pitcher. Those with large families needed more water, but those with small families wanted to have their turn first. Disputes over water became a part of everyday life because the settlement’s two hand-operated water pumps had to be shared by 60 households.

hygiene (WASH) improvement drive has led to several positive behavioural changes amongst target groups.

As an integrated project focusing on the promotion of peace at the local level, the LRP worked with the government’s District Development Committee to identify and fund the Musahar community’s priorities.

The project has installed 1,084 solar panels in 2012 among the poorest 1,715 households that formerly had no electric lighting. Each solar panel installation of 5 pick watt cost NRs 6,000, one third of which was subsidised by the government.

This is one example from 728 community groups that were empowered to improve their health and hygiene, to access government welfare schemes and to understand the importance of participation and representation in local levels of government. Altogether, the LRP assisted with the social and economic empowerment of 21,215 poor households in 208 programme villages of Mahottari, Sarlahi and Rautahat. Ninety-five per cent of the beneficiaries are women. “The entire face of our settlement has changed. We have given up the practice of open defecation and quarrels that were common over water use have ceased,” said Rajkali Devi Majhi, Chairperson of Bhuiya Maharaj Mahila Jibikoparjan Samuh in Rautahat. As of December 2012, the project has assisted with the installation of 600 hand pumps and construction of 2,077 toilets. The sanitation and

Infrastructure created through the WASH initiative has reduced the most onerous of women’s daily tasks and reduced the risk of women being physically abused by having to do chores outside after dark.

“We no longer buy kerosene to light homes. The solar tuki gives enough light. The danger of our settlement catching fire during summer has also gone down. Kids spend more time doing their homework in the evening. Our way of life has changed because of solar lights,” says Chinimaya Ghising of Bhaktipur, Sarlahi. A start up grant of NRs 9,000 was extended to each of the 17,284 families from the poorest and most vulnerable households, which has brought a wave of new opportunities to improve their livelihood. The combined benefits of social mobilisation and the provision of microenterprise start-up grants has produced encouraging results in poor villages. While many beneficiaries have used their grants to raise livestock, others chose vegetable farming or trade and retailing. Women, who were previously confined to their homes, now operate businesses outside their

Rajkali Devi Majhi using a hand pump

homes. In order to tackle root causes of gender-based violence, each village has formed a Women’s Rights Forum. Women activists from community organisations that are assisted by this project and other supporters participate in this forum. As a result of regular awareness initiatives, people now know the consequences of child marriage, the dowry system, witchcraft and domestic violence. “We are glad that people are becoming more vocal against gender based violence,” said Meera Mishra, Woman Development Officer of Mahottari. “It is a promising sign that women, whose voice had been long subdued by poverty, illiteracy and male domination have started to speak up against all forms of violence in their village,” said Mishra. A series of training programmes, which were provided to woman activists from 208 VDCs and members of 133 youth clubs, has led to improved social mobilisation and stronger social cohesion.

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

A co-operative group meeting supported by EAFS in Dolakha district

The project, which was supported by Nepal Rastra Bank (Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Central Bank), provided formal financial services for low-income households. By the end of the project in 2012, 281,313 new clients from remote parts Nepal had used the service.

Making f inan c e a c c e s s i b le t o t h e p o o r Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s difficult geographic terrain makes it difficult for financial institutions to reach remote hilly and mountainous areas. Many people walk for hours to visit their nearest financial service provider, but many more people do not have access to any financial institutions at all. For this reason, the majority of people in rural areas depend on local moneylenders or relatives if they need a loan or may sell their hard-earned assets. In 2012, UNDP and UNCDF successfully concluded the Enhancing Access to Financial Services (EAFS) project that was aimed at broadening access to financial services for poor youth and marginalised groups by forging linkages between financial service providers and savings credit groups to support new innovations in service delivery.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

The project also supported the expansion of the branches of other microfinance institutions (partner MFIs opened 160 new branches) to 68 districts, which linked more than 3,000 savings and credit groups with over 66,000 members to microfinance institutions. The project also developed the capacity of over 530 staff members of 16 microfinance institutions for better service delivery. EAFS made it possible for poor people in rural areas to access financial services such as saving and credit facilities to start businesses and small enterprises. Although the project is now closed, the government and private microfinance institutions (MFIs) have the opportunity to replicate the modality in other parts of the country. As the number of MFIs grows in Nepal, this is likely to lead to a rapid expansion of branches in remote parts of Nepal, which will give thousands of people, deprived of modern finance system, access to finance for the first time.

19-year-old Ganesh Bhattrai of Garamuni 2, Jhapa today runs a successful micro enterprise of producing and selling mushrooms. He is one of the many entrepreneurs supported by MEDEP.

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Chapter 3

Energy and Environment E ne r g y a s de v el o p m en t m u lt iplie r Clean, reliable and affordable energy services are essential for global prosperity and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Access to energy has a profound impact on multiple aspects of human development, from poverty to gender equality, health, food security and climate change. The catalyzing effect of modern energy on the development of Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s many rural villages is evident. Yet 30 per cent of households in the country still do not have access to electricity (Nepal Living Standard survey 2010/2011). Even for the 70 per cent that do have electricity, the supply is unreliable. Some places in Nepal have up to 19 hours of power cuts in the winter/dry season. Even in the wet season, the power is cut for an average of four hours per day. In the absence of more sustainable sources of energy, thousands of Nepalis continue to rely on solid fuels (traditional biomass and coal) for cooking and heating â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but this comes at a tremendous cost to health, productivity and the environment.

UNDP supported the conservation of Blackbucks and other flora and fauna in the western terai landscape complex. U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

The per capita commercial energy consumption of Nepal is the lowest in the world (Energy Sector Synopsis Report, Water and Energy Commission Secretariat, July 2010). Access to modern and clean energy services for the poor is about energizing human development Since 1996 UNDP has been helping the people and the GoN to address the challenges that restrict access to energy. Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s landscape, for example, makes it difficult to provide access to modern sources of energy. The support that UNDP provides to improve access to energy, however, offers people new choices and opportunities for development.

E ne r g y f o r L i v eli h o o d The Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood (RERL) Programme, which is the successor to the Rural Energy Development Programme (REDP), commenced on April 1 2011. Like the REDP, the RERL is a joint programme of the GoN, UNDP and the World Bank. It aims to improve rural livelihoods by giving people access to clean and renewable energy systems. The project uses the best practices identified and lessons learnt from the REDP to develop a new model based on interventions in the rural energy sector to build sustainable livelihoods and alleviate poverty. It provides inclusive access to energy services in remote areas of Nepal, particularly for women and people from traditionally excluded groups. The project also seeks to accrue the benefits of economic, environmental and social development to rural people by removing barriers that hinder their use of renewable energy resources. With these goals, the RERL has been helping the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) to implement the Rural Energy Policy 2006 and develop strategies for the safe exit of RERL/REDP by ensuring internalisation and institutionalisation of best practices. Besides, the programme recommends key areas of UNDP support for GoN to promote accelerated growth of Rural/ Renewable Energy (RE) sector from the short, medium and long-term perspectives. In 2012, the RERL supported the construction of 50 micro hydropower plants in remote areas resulting in the production of 1,570 kW of electricity that powered 16,747 rural households. The RERL also supports rural households in the project area to install improved cooking stoves and toilets attached biogas plants. This year, 462 toilets were attached biogas production facilities. In addition, 1,720 households in various districts have installed improved cooking stoves . Access to community managed energy services in the village has helped to change the face of many remote villages in Nepal. Since kerosene lamps were replaced by electric bulbs and wood-fires have been replaced by biogas and ICS, there has been substantial reduction in indoor smoke inhalation, which leads to better

health outcomes. Improved energy sources have also led to better education outcomes. Electric lighting allows girls and boys to study in the evening. This has helped girls in particular because they can now study at night after completing household chores. Many schools now have computer and Internet facilities. These factors have led to a reduced incidence of children dropping out of school before completing a basic education.

Drona Ban runs a noodles factory in Kharbang in Baglung district with the electricity generated from a micro-hydro power plant.

RERL also provided technical and financial assistance to install and operate end-use applications so that modern technologies can improve living conditions in rural areas. In 2012, 102 energy-based enterprises were installed and operated by community members. Agro processing mills were the most popular example of an end-use application that leverage new technology. Agro mills benefit women in particular as it mechanises the process of grinding grains â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a task that used to be particular onerous for women, Other end-used applications, which have been developed include rural communication & information centres, computer institutes and rural carpentry workshops. UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

District-wise Beneficiary Households of Micro Hydro Plants Installed with the Support of the Government of Nepal, UNDP and the World Bank

Humla

Darchula Bajhang

Doti

Achham

Kanchanpur

Legend

Kalikot

Dailekh

Kailali

Jumla

Mustang

Jajarkot

Rukum Bardiya

2000-4000

Manang

Surkhet

International Boundary

Regional Boundary Beneficiary Household Up to 2000

Dolpa

More than 4000

Myagdi

Salyan

Rolpa

Kaski

Pyuthan

Banke Dang

Parba t

Baglung Gulmi anchi

Kapilbastu

Gorkha

Rasuwa

Syangja

k Argha

Lamjung

Tanahu

Palpa Rupandehi

Nuwakot

Sindhupalchok u nd ma aktapur h t h Ka B

Dhading

Nawalparasi

Chitawan

Dolakha Solukhumbu

Dadeldhura

Mugu

Bajura

Makwanpur

Lalitp u

Baitadi

Kavrepalanchok

Khotang Bhojpur

Terhathum Panchthar

Bara Rautahat Sarlahi

Mahottari

Dhankuta

Dhanusa

Siraha

Udayapur

Saptari

87,500

75,0 00

Taplejung

Okhaldhunga

Sindhuli

Parsa

Sankhuwasabha

Ramechhap

Sunsari

Morang

Ilam

Jhapa

350,00 0 Kilometers

Detail List of Micro Hydro Districts Darchula Baitadi Bajhang Bajura Dadeldhura Achham Doti Dailekh Humla

Nos 9 17 10 9 9 17 8 14 3

Kw 254 274 316 290 89 372 208 235 49

Hhs 2810 2657 3528 3521 789 4386 2287 2566 537

Districts Mugu Pyuthan Jumla Jajarkot Rukum Rolpa Baglung Myagdi Parbat

Nos 3 9 1 1 1 3 70 15 10

Kw 54 114 20 16 60 62 1352 309 149

Hhs 557 1279 279 187 500 638 14017 3082 1450

Districts Tanahun Gorkha Dolakha Sindhupalchowk Kavre Dhading Ramechhap Sindhuli Okhaldhunga

Nos 17 9 17 19 26 13 2 1 17

Kw 212 269 352 272 491 202 55 24 327

Hhs 1721 2464 3899 2486 4571 2083 740 224 3793

Districts Solukh u Sankhuwasabha Tehrathum Taplejung Panchthar Khotang Bhojpur Udaypur Total

Nos 8 8 14 11 15 4 4 3 397

Kw 302 170 245 449 314 73 92 50 8122

Hhs 1774 1751 2239 4303 3357 825 777 499 82576

Alternative Energy Promotion Center Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood Programme

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

Power to Succeed The 51 kW Ruma Khola Micro Hydro Village Electrification Project in Darbang, Myagdi was started in 2008 with the financial and technical support of UNDP’s Rural Energy Development Programme (now scaled up to Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihoods). The project provides electricity to 600 households in Ruma VDC and powers more than 50 enterprises.

Bhumiram Bishwokarma, who is from a marginalised group, is one of its beneficiaries. He has proven that anything is possible with determination and will power. With a family of 14, Bishwokarma, who originally came from Baglung Municipality, was struggling to make ends meet. He didn’t have enough money to go abroad for employment. In desperation he migrated to Darbang, Myagdi. While searching for ways to sustain his family he opened a utensils shop with the money that came from selling his ancestral properties. As his utensils business flourished, he also started Bhumiram Bishwokarma (middle) and two employees running the compacting machine to make concrete blocks.

trading in gold and silver jewellery, which was his ancestral profession, but it was still difficult to support his family. He wanted to start a more profitable business, but could not decide what he should do. After the Darbang village was electrified in 2008 he decided to set up a factory to make concrete blocks. As the demand for new buildings in the village increased, his new business flourished. His blocks soon became very popular in the village because people could use them for various construction purposes. Bishwokarma now has five labourers working for him and he earns enough to ensure his family can live comfortably. He no longer wants to go abroad in search of employment. Bishwokarma attributes the increase in his earning power to the electricity generated by the Ruma Khola Project that helped him establish the concrete block industry.

Pa r t ne r s Alternative Energy Promotion Center (AEPC) & The World Bank

I n c r ea s ing p r o d u c t i v i t y t h r o u g h en v i r o n m en t c o n s e r vat i o n It is important to preserve the environment and lay a foundation for development that does not overexploit natural resources. UNDP’s environment programme supports the beneficial use of natural resources while promoting environment conservation through community ownership. In 2012 UNDP’s Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF-SGP) supported implementation of 38 community-led projects in Nepal. Of these, 32 projects are related to GEF focal areas – they contribute to conserving biodiversity, mitigating climate change, preventing land degradation and eliminating persistent organic pollution (POPs) and chemicals. Four projects, which are supported by Community Development and Knowledge Management for Satoyama Initiatives (COMDEKS), are aimed at conserving the landscape in west Makawanpur. The other two projects, which are for water conservation, are supported by Every Drop Matters in collaboration with the Coca Cola Company and have already been implemented in the Kathmandu valley.

Hig h lig h t s n Installation of over 1,000 ICS in Lalitpur, Makawanpur and Rautahat. n Installation of 4,000 rice-husk stoves and engagement of 204 households in organic farming in Bara; conservation of four significant wetlands in Rupandehi, Dang, Kapilvastu and Arghakhanchi. n Nearly five million litres of ground water in ponds and communal courtyards are recharged annually in Kathmandu are major achievements of 2012. n Supported the creation of a medical waste management facility and mercury-free environment at Kanti Children’s Hospital. n Supported a public interest litigation calling for an environmentally friendly healthcare waste management system with scientific inputs. On the 27 November, 2012, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of regulating the healthcare waste management in response to a lawsuit filed by Pro Public. Mr Ram Charitra Sah, Executive Director of CEPHED, a SGP grantee. n UNDP’s awareness programme led to the grill entrepreneurs of Kaski, Biratnagar and Makawanpur voluntarily switching from wet welding machine, which emit harmful carcinogens, to safer dry welding machines.

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Up Clo s e

Organic vegetable farming Mrs Buddhi Maya Thing, from Haraiya-1, Bara, did not believe organic vegetable farming could generate income. With only 0.1 hectare of land and a four-member family to feed, she could only make Rs 3,000 a year from traditional farming. In late 2011, she joined the farmers’ field school for winter crop farming organized by one of the SGP projects and implemented by Multidimensional Resource Center Nepal (MRC). There she learned how to plant winter vegetables and produce organic manure and pesticide by using local material. Initially, she started a kitchen garden where she grew vegetables that she sold for a small sum. With her knowledge from the winter crop farming training, she

started organic tomato farming as a winter crop in her 0.1 hectare. Within four months, she had produced and sold tomatoes worth Rs 30,000. “Even with the money in hand, I could not believe organic farming on such a low scale could generate income in such a short time span,” said Mrs Thing. As summer crops, she has planted gourds and pumpkins in her garden for self consumption. “I have used the income from tomato farming to pay school fees for my children and to repay our loans,”she further added. The SGP project has been designed in such a way that small land holders and women can engage in small scale organic vegetable farming. “Compared to traditional farming,

Buddhi Maya weighing tomatoes produced in her organic farm

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

organic vegetable farming is less labor intensive,” said Bharat Khadka, the team leader of the project. Like Mrs Thing, 204 households are reaping benefits from organic vegetable farming in 14 hectares of land in Bara. Of them, 117 households are involved in subsistence-level farming (limited to household consumption), whereas 87 households have started organic farming on commercial and semi-commercial scale. According to astudy carried out by MRC Nepal,it is possible to earn an annual gross profit of up to Rs 36,000 through organic vegetable farming in as little as 0.03 hectare of land.

Pa r t ne r s Global Environmental Facility, Government of Japan, CocaCola Company

Members of the Panchase protected Forest Users Group from Kaski pose for a photo

C o n s e r vat i o n o f t h e w e t land s Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands in Nepal (CSUWN) is a joint undertaking of the GoN, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the UNDP, which has been implemented for the last five years (January 2008 to June 2013) by the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation (MFSC) with the Department of Forests (DoF) and the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) as its major partners. The Project is being implemented at two wetland sites of Nepal—KoshiTappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR) and Ghodaghodi lake Area (GLA). The goal is to address the root causes of wetland degradation and loss of wetland habitats. The project aims to integrate biodiversity conservation issues into national policies and planning frameworks. The project also aims to improve the management of wetland resources for sustainable livelihoods.

Hig h lig h t s n The National Wetland policy (NWP) 2012 was approved by the Government of Nepal. n Provided a multi-stakeholder forum to foster collaborative management of the Jagadishpur Reservoir, Kapilvastu. n Organised the International Wetland Symposium in 2012 as a knowledge sharing event, which concluded with a 9-point ‘Pokhara Declaration’. n Established a Joint Venture Company (JVC) for the production and marketing of wetlandbased products involving 25 women from the Bantar ethnic group at KTWR. n Marked increase in the population of key indicator species. n A total of 338 Biogas plants and 810 ICS have been installed, which have contributed to the total carbon offset of 2,359.24 tonnes/ year and 1,215 tonnes/year respectively. n An updated checklist of GLA birds published and posters of threatened bird species prepared and distributed.

E c o s y s t e m b a s ed A dap tat i o n Ecosystem based Adaptation (EbA) in Mountain Ecosystem in Nepal project was launched in August 2012 and is now being implemented in 17 VDCs in the Panchase Protected Forest and surrounding areas. The project team has worked with field implementing partners to identify and implement EbA options. The EbA options that were identified as: n Ecosystem restoration and forest management initiatives. n Conservation farming and livestock husbandry. n Sustainable water use and management. Besides, the project has helped build the capacity of its partners and local stakeholders based on EbA concept. Various interaction programmes have been held and the project is completing its preparations on new EbA training.

Pa r t ne r s UN Environment Programme UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Chapter 4

Reducing vulnerabilities, preserving development gains Although Nepal is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, it was once very unprepared to deal with crises. In the last few years, however, with the support of UNDP and other development partners, the Government of Nepal has made considerable progress toward building capacity at the national and community levels to mitigate and respond to disasters. Disasters take an enormous toll on lives, property and reverse development gains that have been achieved through decades of investment and progress. UNDP leads a flagship programme that helps the government and communities become more resilient to the impacts of disasters. Now, school buildings are being retrofitted to help them withstand earthquakes, municipalities are revising building codes and masons, who construct the majority of buildings, are being trained to apply techniques that make buildings more resistant to structural damage caused by earthquakes.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

A view of Kathmandu valley.

Through the Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management Programme (CDRMP), UNDP works with government ministries, departments, academic and training institutions and security agencies to enhance their capacity in disaster and climate risk management. This programme focuses on building the institutional capacity of key ministries and disaster responders, including those institutions that are responsible for early recovery, and search and rescue.

B u ilding r e s ilien c e In 2012, CDRMP provided technical support to seven government ministries and the the National Planning Commission to mainstream disaster and climate risk management (D/CRM) into their policies and programmes. To support these mainstreaming efforts, the Central Natural Disaster Relief Committee has recommended that the cabinet require all local bodies to set aside at least 5 percent of their resources for D/CRM. UNDP has also partnered with the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), Local Development Training Academy (LDTA) and Tribhuvan University to ensure that national and local government officials have adequate knowledge to integrate disaster and climate risk management into development plans by supporting the development of curriculums for training in disaster and climate risk management. The programme worked with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) to launch the National Emergency Operation Center (NEOC), which is a 24-hour emergency operation centre to coordinate disaster response, and to establish 26 District Emergency Operation Centres, five Regional Emergency Operation Centres, and five Municipal Emergency Operation Centres. Similarly, 16 District Emergency Operation Centres have recently conducted simulation exercises to test their standard operating procedures and disaster preparedness and response plans. The programme works closely with relevant ministries to improve the capacity of first responders, who are responsible for search and rescue, manage the fire services and provide first aid to save lives and property. In collaboration with the Department of Hydrology and Metrology (DHM), the CDRMP has established a network of institutions that work on early warning systems for better coordination. The programme worked closely with the Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium (NRRC) Flagship 4 (Community Based DRM) to develop nine minimum characteristics of a disaster resilient community and supports the scaling up of a national approach to CBDRM. Disaster resilience was strengthened in more than 50 VDCs through communitybased interventions. These interventions have helped the most vulnerable communities protect their land from water induced disasters while also promoting sustainable livelihoods through activities such as offseason vegetable farming, cash crops and commercial production of handicraft. Plans to install a community-based early warning system downstream of Tsho Rolpa lake in Rolwaling valley are also being worked out.

More than 60 Community Based Disaster Risk Management Committees (CBDRMCs) have been formed in 11 districts with more than 600 community members (51 per cent female). Similarly, 37 Local Disaster Risk Management Committees (LDRMC), and more than 50 school-based Environment Conservation and Disaster Risk Reduction (ECO-DRR) Clubs have been established and institutionalised. Likewise, capacity building initiatives have been organised for over 3,000 community members on search and rescue, first aid, early warning system (EWS) and disaster and climate risk management so that local community members are equipped to respond to disasters. As a result of UNDPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advocacy, 39 VDCs have allocated budget for disaster risk management in their plans in 2012. Similarly, district line agencies, such as the District Soil Conservation Offices, District Development Committees and Village Development Committees have provided financial and technical support to CBDRM committees and ECO-DRR Clubs, particularly to implement mitigation measures against floods and landslides. Early recovery activities were supported in 12 districts of Eastern Nepal that were affected by the earthquake in September 2011. A total of 36 school blocks were constructed, and 64 schools were either renovated or retrofitted with the

National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) simulation on responding to emergency

help of 89 engineers and 1,208 masons who were trained in earthquake-resilient building techniques. This directly benefited 13,600 children, who now attend school in safer buildings and are trained in DRR and emergency response. In 2012, 47.7 per cent of direct beneficiaries of the programme were women, which was an improvement of 31.7 per cent from 2011 when only 16 per cent of beneficiaries were women. To increase the potential of women and girls to become agents of change in their households, communities and districts, several training programmes were developed specifically for women including female masonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s training, female homeowners training, and basic disaster relief management training for housewives. These three training programmes were developed as pilots in 2012 with the intention to scale up and expand their delivery in future. Community members take part in a rescue training

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

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Building capacity of first responders

Despite being a landlocked country, Nepal is the second largest source of fresh running water in the world. While this is a tremendous resource, however, it also causes many people to be vulnerable to water induced disasters such as flooding, landslides, erosion, debris flow, and glacial lake outbursts. In 2010, for example, there were 67 recorded deaths from landslides and 27 deaths from floods.

The Armed Police Force (APF) is actively involved in search, rescue and relief operations as per the legislated responsibility entrusted to them by government of Nepal (“To assist in rendering relief to disaster or epidemic victims”). As per the APF’s Disaster Management Action Plan, it has established a Disaster Management Training Centre in Kurintar, Chitwan, with the goal of developing an elite disaster management team. Due to

Pa r t ne r s DFID, ECHO, The World Bank, UNISDR, OXFAM, Save the Children, ADPC and NSET

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

lack of trained Armed Police Personals in Deep Water Diving, the technical capacity to rescue citizens or vehicles from floods is limited. As a result, experts from other countries have previously been called on to conduct deep water search and rescue in times of crises. This has the added risk of longer response times and greater costs.

Through the support of the Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management Programme, 25 APF officers received seven-week deep water diving training in Bangladesh from May 13 to June 28, 2012. The training strengthened the knowledge and technical capabilities of the Nepalese rescue teams so they could respond to deep-water emergencies in times of flooding another water-induced disasters. An expert team of local deep-water rescue experts can now be deployed from the APF Disaster Management Training Center, Kurintar. The deep water diving training has enhanced my capacity to deal with water rescue missions, since then I have actively involving to impart trainings to the Trainees of Disaster Management Training Center and also involved in to train the community group of Sindulpalchowak for light search and rescue’ says Inspector Ramesh Thapa, one of the trained Personnel of APF.

The trained APF are now instructors for other security forces and have been mobilized in rescue operations during disasters. Since the training, there have been 35 recorded incidents which the trained APF have responded to. These include incidents like capsizing of four-wheel vehicles and motorcycles in the Trishuli and Narayani rivers where many people went missing. All together, the APF team has been able to save 162 lives and recover 40 dead bodies from the Trishuli and Narayani by the end of 2012.

APF has established dedicated Disaster Management Trained Team at Siuchatar, Kathmandu and in 5 Regional Brigades as well. They are also in the process to establish a dedicated Disaster Management Team in each district of Nepal. The trained APF have also been mobilized to teach communities in light search and rescue strategies in six different districts. In 2012, more than 200 community members including 20 females have received the training. CDRMP has established a partnership with the World Bank to procure search and rescue equipment worth US $539,614, including diving suits and underwater communication equipment.

APF members take part in deep water diving training in Bangladesh. Photo Courtesy: APF

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Chapter 5

Consolidating peace Six years after signing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s peace process has reached an irreversible stage with a definitive conclusion of the armed conflict. Among other milestones reached, the former Maoist army completed its transition through integration into the Nepal Army, voluntary retirement and rehabilitation into civilian life. At the same time, many aspects of the peace agreement and larger peace-building effort remain unfinished. The post-conflict period has been characterised by polarisation around multiple political, socio-economic and identity-related issues including models of federalism, transitional justice, those involuntarily disappeared, the terms of a new round of national elections, and land tenure issues. Many of these issues have the potential to escalate into full-blown violence, including those at the local and district levels.

An ex-combatant during the discharge process

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

To consolidate peace and prevent future conflict, UNDP is working with the government, political parties and civil society. UNDP draws on its global expertise in peace-building and its neutral position as an impartial convener to bring parties and groups together for amicable resolution of political and other conflicts. Under the Conflict Prevention Programme (CPP), UNDP promotes collaborative leadership and dialogue among Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leaders, along with conflict sensitive development in both Government and UN policy and programming. UNDP also continues to support the rehabilitation of former Maoist combatants (34 per cent female) into sustainable civilian livelihoods, through the leadership of the UN Interagency Rehabilitation Programme (UNIRP).

D ial o g u e f o r pea c e As a part of Conflict Prevention Programme (CPP), UNDP has been working with government officials, political party representatives and civil society actors through its Collaborative Leadership and Dialogue (CLD) initiative to promote dialogue around contentious local and national issues. This programme has the overall objective of finding common ground in support of key development agendas to prevent the escalation of tensions. The programmeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s activities include capacity building for leaders and support for ongoing and emerging dialogue efforts. In 2012, the CLD organized training for 263 leaders (34 percent female), helped support dialogue initiatives in Janakpur and Nepalgunj, and laid the foundation for future dialogue on key peace-building issues.

Ex-combatants queue up for the verification and discharge process

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

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Political Party leaders collaborate for Janakpur, which is the headquarters of Dhanusa district in Southern Nepal, was the centre of political and ethnic tensions during and after the Madhesi movement in April 2007. The political environment was divisive and relations between opposing party leaders was tense. In order to repair relationships and prevent further escalation of tensions, UNDP’s Conflict Prevention Programme (CPP) initiated an engagement process in Dhanusa through its CLD initiative in late 2011. The district was selected as a pilot site because a nationwide assessment had identified that there was little collaboration among leaders and generally weak conflict resolution capacity.

The CPP’s engagement with leaders in Dhanusa began with introductory training workshops for local leaders on collaborative leadership and dialogue to help them adopt participatory approaches to structured dialogue and consensus building. From March 2012 to September 2012, follow-up workshops were held with the district presidents of political parties. This resulted in an agenda of action including a shared ‘code of conduct’ that now guides the procedures for regular meetings between the leaders.

Participants in a CLD workshop for political leaders in Janakpur

The multi-party coordination that resulted from this initiative has sent out a positive message in Janakpur where it has been closely followed by the local media. One of the political leaders, Kaushalendra Mishra of the Chure Bhawar Samaj said, “I never visited the office of another party because I used to think of them as enemies. But after the CLD workshop, we have been taking turns to hold meetings at different party offices.” Another political leader, Parmeshwor Shah added, “The level of trust has increased.” CLD workshops have brought leaders from political parties, government, civil society, and the media together to help them learn basic dialogue and collaboration skills to jointly solve common issues. Since the training programmes, UNDP has supported various dialogue initiatives, which were led by these local leaders. The workshops focused on helping local politicians understand and articulate their vision of how Nepal could be in the future, and identifying issues of mutual interest such as education, healthcare and public security. The workshops also provided a space to explore

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

shared agenda the dynamics between the political parties, and encouraged reflection about the pros and cons of competition and collaboration to achieve certain goals. After the first CLD workshop with political leaders in Dhanusa, the participants formed an all-party presidential mechanism to initiate dialogue and participate in joint action on identified priority issues. Parallel to its local level work, the CLD has a Kathmandu-based steering committee that meets every month to guide the programme and champion collaborative leadership within their respective constituencies. Brikhesh Chandra Lal, a former mayor of Janakpur, is one of the steering committee members. He participated in some of programme’s local workshops, shared his insights in the strategic utility of collaborative approaches to leadership. The members of the steering committee and CLD’s senior facilitators Padma Ratna Tuladhar, Daman Nath Dhungana (both co-facilitators of peace negotiations between 2002 to 2005) and Bhojraj Pokharel (Chief Election Commissioner for

Political party leaders in Kailali take part in a CLD workshop

the landmark 2008 elections) conducted local workshops outside Kathmandu that emphasised collaborative leadership, dialogue and improved coordination. The CPP has been providing follow-up support and advice to local political actors through the technical specialists in the CLD field office. Since the dialogues, political leaders have been focusing on local development and planning issues that were identified as common priorities during the CLD workshops. Among the key issues

that were identified were the dearth of teachers in local schools, a high level of absenteeism among Village Development Committee secretaries, the dilapidated state of the local hospital, compensation of victims of road accidents, and reopening a closed government-owned factory that once employed over 700 people. Local party leaders are also considering requesting support from the CLD for structured dialogue in Janakpur around a ‘peace and development agenda’.

Pa r t ne r s UNFPN & SIDA

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Main s t r ea m ing C o n f li c t Sen s i t i v i t y In the spirit of ‘delivering as one’, since 2010 UNDP Nepal has led the development and implementation of Mainstreaming Conflict Sensitivity programme, in collaboration with UNICEF and the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator’s Office (UNRCHCO). While development programmes are designed for positive changes in the lives of beneficiaries, they sometimes bring about unintended consequences, which can exacerbate or even cause conflict. Conflict sensitive approaches to peace and development programming were created to address this problem by helping organisations recognise how to maximise positive impact while minimising negative effects. Impacts from the integration of conflict sensitivity in UN programming and policy are evident. It was made as part of the selection criteria and requirement for the UN Peace Fund Nepal, which resulted to the development of projects that are well-adjusted to their contexts. A total of 219 UN staff members were trained in Do No Harm in 2012. Conflict sensitivity is now part of the RCA and is mentioned in staff TORs. Context analysis, which is the core of conflict sensitivity, is now practiced by UN agencies and partners in all five development regions of Nepal. This year the CPP broadened its work on conflict sensitivity to meet the growing demand from the GoN for support in this area. In October 2012, an MOU was signed with the Nepal Administrative Staff College (NASC) to integrate conflict sensitivity in their professional development courses and begin training government officials from other ministries. Fifteen trainers from various government training academies, such as the Local Development Training Academy (LDTA), Personnel Training Academy (PTA), National Centre for Educational Development (NCED), Revenue Administration Training Centre benefited from this training. Since then, training in conflict sensitivity has been implemented at these institutions too. To date, 169 government officials (12 per cent women) have been trained on the application of ‘Do No Harm’ in development programming.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

Other participants from NASC-led trainings, such as officials from the Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force, have begun applying conflict sensitivity in their daily work, especially while responding to conflicts in villages. When they are in the field APF personnel carefully analyse the perception their personal behavior might create. They now carefully choose where to have their meals, for example, to avoid any perceived bias towards a particular social or interest group in a given area. These training programmes also resulted in the application of the principles of conflict sensitivity in local policies, such as the requirement that schools create “conflictfree classrooms”. The conflict sensitivity mainstreaming initiative will continue to formalise partnerships with other government training academies such as LDTA, NCED and the Land Management Training Centre (LMTC) and to ensure the capacity of senior and technical officers from the Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction, Ministry of Local Development and the National Planning Commission to mainstream conflict sensitivity in all planning and policy processes is increased.

Ba c k t o Ci v ilian li v e s The rehabilitation of the discharged Maoist ex-combatants after their return to civilian life is a landmark achievement in Nepal’s peace process. The United Nations Interagency Rehabilitation Programme (UNIRP) is supporting the smooth socio-economic rehabilitation of a key group of ex-combatants, known as Verified Minors and Late Recruits (VMLR)—who were discharged in 2010, either because they are minors or because they were recruited after the signing of the Ceasefire agreement in 2006.

Of the total VMLRs, 30% were women and girls, and 74% were aged below 18 when the 2006 cease-fire agreement was signed. Furthermore, many of them came from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and lacked the necessary skills to make a successful transition from military to civilian life. Many also suffered psychosocial trauma from their wartime experiences. To help address their needs, UNIRP provided them with holistic support, including individual career counselling, psychosocial support, training and education, and health support.

By the end of 2012, 2,742 VMLRs (Female 940, Male 1802) had learned about the rehabilitation options that were available to them by contacting UNIRP’s toll-free number. Since first making contact with UNIRP, 93% of them received career counselling. Eighty-one per cent enrolled in one of the four available rehabilitation options (vocational skills training, micro-enterprise

Family of a VMLR after their rehabilitation

development, health-related training and education, and formal or informal education). Considering that 37.4 per cent (837) of the participants are women, UNIRP applied a gender-inclusive approach to provide specific support that included nutritional support for pregnant and lactating mothers, childcare centres, childcare grants and baby food, specialised career/psychosocial counselling sessions, and other gender-specific support services. To date, almost 80% of the 2,231 enrolled VMLR – 837 of whom were female combatants – have completed one of the rehabilitation options. Of the total graduates, 1,089 have started their own microenterprises or have found employment elsewhere. Many of the VMLR have returned home, determined to make a fresh start with their new skills and knowledge. The local communities played a significant role in helping ex-combatants make the successful transition to civilian life. To help create a welcoming environment for VMLR, UNIRP organized peace-building activities that engaged the whole community. Originally scheduled to end in January 2013, the programme has been extended until the end of July 2013 to allow more time for crucial follow-up support, such as business mentoring, counselling, micro-credit services and job searches.

Pa r t ne r s UN Peace Fund for Nepal, Government of Canada, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland and the United Kingdom

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Up Clo s e

From carrying guns to running a meat shop “Now I am living on my own, not under someone else’s orders. That’s the biggest change in my life.” Sikandar Tharu, a verified late recruit, is running a butcher shop in a nearby market. “Mausam Fresh House–With the support of UNDP,” declares a sign at the front of the shop. Sikandar Tharu of Adharsha Amuwa 7, Rupandehi, is an ex-combatant of the Maoist army who was recruited after the ceasefire agreement in 2006. He stayed in the cantonment and was trained as a soldier until he was discharged as a late recruit in 2010. “After coming out of the cantonment, I had nothing to do. After being detached from the Maoist Party, I had to find a way to make a living, but I didn’t know how,” he recalled. “Then, I was informed that the UN was providing support for the rehabilitation of the discharged ex-combatants. It was like a message from the God. I visited a regional UNIRP office and received career counselling. It was during the counselling that the idea of a butcher shop came up. Since there was no other butcher shop in the market, locals had to walk four kilometres to buy meat. I felt this could be my opportunity.”

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

Sikandar with his wife Apekshya and family

Sikander’s chicken meat shop has a good reputation among locals. Local customer praise Sikandar for supplying fresh meat and storing them hygienically.

market bordering India. Soon, apart from fresh meat, he was selling live chickens, which increased the scale of his business considerably.

Following Sikandar’s success, three new butcher shops opened in the market, but none of them could survive. “They tried to copy my business, but it wasn’t sustainable. They didn’t have the skills and knowledge to run this business. On the other hand, I have followed specific instructions given to me during the training which I believe has been instrumental in my success.”

Sikandar’s income from his new business is enough to support his seven-member family. His father, who has recently returned from Malaysia, is very pleased with his son’s entrepreneurship. “We were worried when he was discharged because it cut the family’s only income source. We don’t need to worry anymore. Now he is taking care of the whole family,” said Sikandar’s father.

Through UNIRP’s in-kind support, Sikandar was provided with equipment and tools, including a deep-fridge, a gas cylinder and a business trolley worth about NRs 30,000 in total. In addition to UNIRP’s start-up support, Sikandar was able to receive financial support from his wife who was also an ex-combatant and had received a voluntary retirement package. With that help, he bought a motorcycle to fetch live chicken from a

According to Sikandar, the rehabilitation training has brought about a big change in his life. “Now I am living on my own, not under someone else’s orders. That’s the biggest change in my life. Previously, the family only talked about politics, but now we discuss our business and our future.” Like Sikandar, many other VLMRs enrolled in the rehabilitation programme have moved on to a new productive and peaceful life leaving a violent past behind.

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Chapter 6

Providing care for those living with HIV In Nepal, over 7000 HIV infected people have been taking ARV drugs to improve the quality of their lives. While not all infected people need to take drugs, many infected people are yet to be tested and identified. It is estimated that Nepal currently has over 43,200 people living with HIV/AIDS. Nepal is one of three countries in the Asia-Pacific region where HIV prevalence has decreased by more than 25% in the last decade, according to the 2011 UNAIDS Global HIV Report. UNDP managed the majority of Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Round 2 and Round 7 HIV grants from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM) since 2005. In early 2013 UNDP successfully concluded its $12 million partnership with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Through this partnership with the Global Fund, UNDP supported the procurement of Anti-Retroviral (ARV) drugs, lab equipment and supplies, established and refurbished Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) sites across Nepal and provided care and support to People Living with HIV.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

A hospital staff works at the storage area of AntiRetroviral Treatment clinic in Seti Zonal Hospital

The programme successfully scaled up the provision of ART services from 23 to 36 sites by establishing 2 new ART sites and 10 sub-centres, which are managed under the public health system. This increased the number of HIV victims who accessed ART from 2,050 people in 2008 to over 7000 people in July 2012. Similarly, 30 new Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) and Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) sites were created, bringing the total number of VCT sites that are managed by the public health system to 66. Nearly a dozen standard operating procedures and guidelines were developed, reviewed and updated to ensure the operation of VCT and ART sites meet minimum standards required for treatment and for uniform monitoring. Most of the guidelines were translated into Nepali language to ensure health professionals can use them properly. Several trainings and workshops were organised to enhance the capacity of health sector personnel to provide HIV testing, counselling, treatment of sexually transmitted infections and opportunistic infections and provide anti-retroviral treatment. They were also trained on the specifics of managing, monitoring and evaluating HIV/AIDs programmes.. Upon completion of the programme that was funded by the Round 7 HIV grant from 2008 - 2012, UNDP handed over the refurbished Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) sites and an adequate supply HIV/AIDS drugs to meet the country’s needs until March 2014. The facilities and supplies have been transferred to the National Centre for AIDS and STD Control (NCASC), a government entity. It is quite likely that the ART centres will continue to function. Demands for the services continue to increase and the NCASC is committed to ensure that this demand is met. The capacity of the staff of the NCASC and the Logistics Management Division (LMD) of the Ministry of Health and Population was improved through participation in training and workshop, so the NCASC, together with LMD, can carry on these activities as per the procedures established during the grant implementation.

Hig h lig h t s n HIV drugs and health products, including Antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, HIV test kits and condoms and lubricants, worth US$ 2.1 million were procured. The stock of drugs and supplies is expected to meet the country’s need until March 2014. n Additional resources from UNDP were invested for capacity development of the staff of the National Centre for AIDS and NCASC and LMD, in order to enhance the procurement and supply chain management system and to ensure the smooth transition of procurement functions from UNDP to other entities under the ministry. As a result, NCASC has become the principal recipient for both health sector and procurement components of Global Fund grant of Round 7 phase 2 in July 2012. n A 40 cubic meter walk-in cold room (for storing drugs and supplies) worth $51,153 was installed in the NCASC central HIV store. n 12 ART sites were refurbished. The ART site in Teku, one of the refurbished sites, is the largest in Nepal, and serves over 1300 people living with HIV in the Kathmandu valley. n Nepal’s Quality Assurance Plan for HIV Pharmaceuticals was developed with UNDP’s technical assistance support. NCASC established a Quality Assurance Task Force for quantification, quality assurance and control for HIV pharmaceuticals and health products. NCASC and LMD have taken over the responsibility of quality control activities from early 2013.

An HIV patient receiving counselling in the Anti-Retroviral Treatment clinic in Seti Zonal Hospital

Pa r t ne r s Global Fund To Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM)

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

Funding sources and partnerships

Of the $ 34.2 million spent in 2012, 42% came from UNDP Core funding and UNDPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bureau of Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) while 38% came from bilateral and multilateral agencies and 20% came from the Global Fund, the Global Environment Facility and other funds. The largest donor partner was DFID, which funded 38% of the 2011 programmes providing major support to the Disaster Management, Constitution Building, Election and other projects. Several other new funding partnerships were started in 2012 with DFID, Denmark, Global Fund, Norway, AusAid, UN Peace Fund, European Union, SDC and World Bank. Among the different programme areas, the highest expenditure was in the Energy Environment & Disaster areas which amounted to 24% of the total expenditure, followed by peace building 21%, Livelihoods 20%, HIV/ AIDS 18% and Democratic Governance 17%.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

Mr. Ajay Chhibber, then UN Assistant Secretary General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Regional Director for the Asia-Pacific discussed elections, different development models, climate financing, and infrastructure and energy development with Nepalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s then Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai. Also seen in the picture are then UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Robert Piper, UNDP Country Director Ms. Shoko Noda and UNDP Deputy Country Director (Programme) Mr. Jorn Sorensen.

Sources of Programme E x pendi t u r e in 2 0 1 2

UNDP 42%

Bilateral & Multilateral Donors 38%

Bilateral Funding Between 2010-2013 Donors DFID AusAid EU/ECHO Norway (Norad) Denmark (Danida) British Embassy (UKM) Nepal SDC Canada (CIDA) World Bank Finland ADB Austria Japan Netherlands (NET/SNV) JICA Sweden (SWI/SIDA) Total

US$ Million 27.5 14.4 7.7 4.4 5.1 1.7 1.5 1.4 1.2 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.1 0.1 0.1 67.6

GFATM, MPTF, GEF, MDG 20%

P r o g r a m m e E x pendi t u r e b y T h e m at i c A r ea , 2 0 1 2 Peace Building 21%

HIV/AIDS 18%

Transitional governance 17%

Energy environment & Disaster 24%

Livelihoods 20% UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

United Nations Volunteers The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme has been providing operational and programmatic support to UN agencies in Nepal since 1974. In 2012 UNV continued to manage UN Volunteers in Nepal and to administer the sending of Nepali UN Volunteers abroad to serve in other countries. The UNV had 50 UN Volunteers working in Nepal in eight UN agencies (UNHCR, UNESCO, UNDP, UNICEF, UNRCPD, WFP, UNWOMEN and Resident Coordinator’s Oﬃce). More than 100 Nepali nationals have served as international UN Volunteers in various countries around the globe supporting peace and development. In 2012 UNV continued working together with UNDP and other UN agencies in the UN Joint Programme to support the Local Governance and Community Development Programme (LGCDP) of the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development (MoFALD). UNV’s support to the LGCDP focuses on enhancing the capacity of citizens, communities and marginalized groups to interact with local governments and to hold them accountable in provision of social services through volunteerism.

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

UNV contributed to the LGCDP objective by working hand in hand with the Government of Nepal’s National Development Volunteer Service (NDVS), an entity under the National Planning Commission (NPC), thus linking its mandate of promoting and harnessing volunteerism for development. From 2009 to the end of 2011 UNV recruited and deployed 100 national volunteers who were placed in 48 DDCs as Assistant District Facilitators and 52 Municipalities as Assistant Municipality Facilitators through its own core funding. Since then these volunteer assignments

The Rt. Hon’ble Prime Minister of Nepal, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai launching IYV+10 Yearbook at NPC on September 20, 2012. Also seen to the left of the PM is NPC-VC Deependra Bahadur Kshetry.

continued up to 15 July 2012 with the funding from the NPC where UNV provided on-going technical coordination and support. As UNV’s contribution to UNLGCDP, UNV has been providing financial and technical assistance to NDVS for its capacity enhancement programme to establish it as resource center for volunteerism and development.

Annex 1 U N D P s u pp o r t ed p r o je c t s and p r o g r a m m e s , 2 0 1 2 S.No.

Programme/project

Implemented by

Duration

Funding contributed/committed (current phase)

2012 Expenditure

Project-wise

Donor(s)

Donor (US$)

Total

$6,027,473

UNDP

$2,843,201

$1,447,841

UNPFN

$2,472,795

BCPR

$711,477

BCPR

$2,903,084

UNDP

$1,051,650

UNPFN (only UNDP)

$7,799,251

BCPR

$692,762

UNDP

$48,718

UNDP

$26,383

BCPR

$1,120,879

Swiss/SDC

$743,029

DFID

$2,020,856

UNPF

$550,000

Norway

$21,467

UNHCR

$76,805

AusAid

$1,425,569

Sweden

$876,954

UNDP

$7,588,961

Denmark

$2,600,000

DFID

$3,552,843

British Emb.

$1,005,748

Norway

$2,485,955

BCPR

$580,413

Japan

$253,000

Austria

$278,940

UNDP

$970,901

DFID

$305,811

Peace building (5) 1

2 3

Conflict Prevention Programme (CPP)

Crisis Prevention and Recovery Support to Nepal (CPRSN) UN Inter-agency Rehabilitation Programme (UNIRP)

Support to Nepal’s transition through improved UN coherence

UNDP

UNDP UNDP

UNDP/RCHO

Sept 10-Dec 15

May 08–Dec 13 Jun 10-July 13

Nov 09-Dec 13

$3,954,734 $8,540,731

$6,861,942

$782,754 $2,269,500

$1,522,035

Transitional governance (7) 5

Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal (SPCBN)

Strengthening Planning and Monitoring Capacity of NPC (SNPC)

UNDP

NPC

May 08–Dec 13

Oct 09-June 13

$18,345,860

$1,276,712

$1,646,858

$259,472

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

S.No.

Programme/project

Strengthening the Capacity of National Human Rights Commission (SCNHRC)

UN Joint Programme for the Local Governance and Community Development Programme (LGCDP)

Developing Capacities for Effective Aid Management and Coordination (Aid)

Institutional Strengthening and Professional Development Support for the Election Commission of Nepal (ESP)

Enhancing Access to Justice for Consolidation of Peace in Nepal (A2J) Public-Private Partnerships for Urban Environment (PPPUE) Phase 2

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

Implemented by

NHRC

MoLD

MoF

UNDP

The Supreme Court MoLD

Duration

Aug 09-Sep 13

Apr 09-July 13

Jan 09–July 13

Aug 08–Jan 16

Aug 08–Dec 12

Mar 02–Dec 12

Funding contributed/committed (current phase)

2012 Expenditure

Project-wise

Donor(s)

Donor (US$)

Total

$1,989,672

Finland

$560,710

$613,786

Danida

$393,700

British Embassy

$323,188

SDC

$465,166

OHCHR

$62,190

UNDP

$184,718

MDTF (DFID, Denmark)

$2,017,298

UNDP

$2,472,531

UNICEF

Not thru UNDP

UNFPA

Not thru UNDP

UNCDF

Not thru UNDP

UN Women

Not thru UNDP

UNV

Not thru UNDP

UNDP

$925,038

DANIDA

$426,644

DFID

$240,000

Norway

$2,142,739

Denmark

$2,322,615

DFID

$5,955,125

UNDP

$2,965,013

$1,130,447

AusAid

$1,090,603

JICA

$94,213

BCPR

$1,587,895

UNDP

$1,738,285

UNDP

$2,612,010

ADB

$497,742

Netherlands

$100,000

UNOPS

$25,000

$4,489,829

$1,591,682

$15,700,755

$3,326,180

$3,234,752

$1,324,798

$356,489

$2,441,451

$719,167

$232,368

S.No.

Programme/project

Implemented by

Duration

Funding contributed/committed (current phase)

2012 Expenditure

Project-wise

Donor (US$)

Total

$2,403,522

Donor(s)

Livelihoods (3) 13 14

Livelihood Recovery for Peace (LRP) Enhancing Access to Financial Services (EAFS)

Micro Enterprise Development Programme (MEDEP) Phase 3

UNDP NRB

MoICS

Aug 09-Dec 14 Nov 08–Mar 13

1998–June 13

$9,581,568 $1,347,709

$20,171,842

BCPR

$4,311,768

UNDP

$5,269,800

UNDP

$1,347,709

UNCDF

Not thru UNDP

UNDP

$7,970,368

AusAID

$10,665,634

CIDA

$1,235,840

HPL

$300,000

GEF

$1,964,895

UNDP

$532,142

GEF

$3,312,278

$468,611

$4,124,822

Energy and environment (4) 16

Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands (CSUWN)

MoFSC

Mar 07–June 13

$2,497,037

$611,062

Western Terai Landscape Complex Project (WTLCP)

MoFSC

Aug 05–Dec 12

$4,674,132

UNDP

$1,361,854

Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood Programme (RERL)

MoEST/AEPC

Apr 2011-Dec 2013

$2,022,304

UNDP

$2,022,304

$870,959

Ecosystem based Adaptation in Mountain Ecosystem in Nepal (EbA)

MoFSC

Aug 2012-Dec 2014

$1,731,728

UNDP

$1,731,728

$81,893

UNDP

Feb 2011-Dec 2015

$13,641,709

UNDP

$1,982,342

$6,396,083

BCPR

$2,001,600

DFID

$7,993,519

$1,005,095

UNISDR

$29,853

World Bank

$629,300

Global Fund Rd 7

$17,539,111

$3,129,554

DFID

$24,565,379

UNDP

$980,617

AusAID

$11,093

$753,926

Disaster Risk Reduction (1) 20

Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management Programme (CDRMP)

HIV/AIDS (1) 21

HIV/AIDS Programme

UNDP

Feb 05–April 13

$43,096,200

Others (1) 22 Total

Others Projects and Programme

$7,917,068

$1,788,737

$182,021,619

$34,245,688

UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

li s t o f a c r o n y m s A2J ADB AEPC AIDS ART AusAID BCPR CA CDRMP CIDA CPP CSUWN DFID DRR EAFS EBA EC ECN ESP

Enhancing Access to Justice for Consolidation of Peace in Nepal Asian Development Bank Alternative Energy Promotion Centre acquired immunodeficiency syndrome antiretroviral treatment Australian Agency for International Development Bureau of Crisis Prevention and Recovery Constituent Assembly Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management Programme Canadian International Development Agency Conflict Prevention Programme Conservation and Sustainable Use of Wetlands in Nepal Department for International Development (UK) disaster risk reduction Enhancing Access to Financial Services ecosystem based adaptation European Commission Election Commission of Nepal Institutional Strengthening and Professional Development Support for the Election Commission of Nepal EU ECHO European Union, European Commission Humanitarian Office GBV Gender Based Violence GEF Global Environment Facility GFATM Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria GLOF glacial lake outburst flood HIV human immunodeficiency virus IECCD International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency kW kilowatt LGCDP Local Governance and Community Development Programme LRP Livelihood Recovery for Peace MDG Millennium Development Goals MEDEP Micro Enterprise Development Programme MoEST Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology MoF Ministry of Finance MoFSC Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation

U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012

MoFALD Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development NAPA National Adaptation Programme of Action to Climate Change NASC Nepal Administrative Staff College NCASC National Centre for AIDS and STD Control NCCCP Nepal Climate Change Support Programme NEOC National Emergency Operations Center NGO non-governmental organization NHRC National Human Rights Commission NPC National Planning Commission NRRC Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium PPP public-private partnerships PPPUE Public-Private Partnership for Urban Environment RCHCO UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinators Office REDP Rural Energy Development Programme RERL Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood SCNHRC Strengthening the Capacity of the National Human Rights Commission SDC Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SGP GEFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Small Grants Programme SNPC Strengthening Planning and Monitoring Capacity of NPC SPCBN Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal UNCDF United Nations Capital Development Fund UNDAF United Nations Development Assistance Framework UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNEP United Nations Environment Programme UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change UNFPA United Nations Population Fund UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNICEF United Nations Children's Fund UNIRP UN Interagency Rehabilitation Programme UNISDR United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction UNV United Nations Volunteers VCT voluntary counselling and testing for HIV VDC village development committee VEED vulnerable, excluded and economically deprived VMLR verified minors and late recruits WTLCP Western Terai Landscape Complex Project

ÂŠ United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) UN House, Pulchowk, Lalitpur G.P.O. Box: 107, Kathmandu, Nepal Tel: (977-1) 5523200 Fax: (977-1) 5523991, 5523986

Design & Processed by: PrintCommunication, Thapathali, Kathmandu Printed by: Quality Printers, Ramshah Path, Kathmandu

Editorial Team: Shoko Noda, Country Director Lazima Onta-Bhatta, Assistant Country Director (Strategic Planning and Development Effectiveness Unit) Binda Magar, Gender and Social Inclusion Specialist John Narayan Parajuli, Head of Communications Tapa Dipti Sitaula, Communications Analyst Matthew Clark, Knowledge Management Consultant This report has been prepared with inputs from the Team Leaders, Program Officers and Project Communication Officers.

Photo Credits: Armed Police Force (APF), Bijaya Wagle, Bikas Rauniar, Chandra Shekhar Karki, Devendra Dhungana, John Narayan Parajuli, MRC Nepal, Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium (NRRC), Rochan Kadariya, Sagar Shrestha, Tapa Dipti Sitaula, Tina Pelletier, UNDP Nepal UND P-NEPAL ANNUA L R E PO R T 2 0 1 2

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U ND P- N E PAL AN N UAL R E P OR T 2012